


The Arc of Ascension, Edda 10: Turquoise-eyed Orisa, the Guardian

by bzarcher, solarbird



Series: Of Gods and Monsters [39]
Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Admissions, Background Relationships, Bisexual Character, Bisexual Female Character, Canon Lesbian Character, Choices, Conditioning, Decisions, F/F, Fear, Gen, Lesbian Character, Oasis (Overwatch), Painful Admissions, Surprises, Talon Angela "Mercy" Ziegler, Talon Efi Oladele, Talon Lena "Tracer" Oxton, Talon Orisa (Overwatch), Truth, reluctance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-09
Updated: 2018-07-09
Packaged: 2019-06-07 15:27:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,355
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15222152
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bzarcher/pseuds/bzarcher, https://archiveofourown.org/users/solarbird/pseuds/solarbird
Summary: The new gods have risen, ready, at last, to grapple with a world of heroes. Moira O'Deorain herself has been reborn, now made one of the creations her previous self meant to rule, and she works with her wife - the goddess Mercy - and their ensemble of new deities to remake the world, toimproveit... for everyone.Efi and Orisa return to Oasis, and Efi is informed more was done to her than she ever knew.Of Gods and Monsters: The Arc of Ascensionis a continuance ofOf Gods and Monsters: The Arc of Creation, a side-step sequel toThe Armourer and the Living Weapon. It will be told in a series of eddas, sagas, interludes, fragments, texts, and cantos, all of which serve their individual purposes. To follow it as it appears,please subscribe to the series.





	The Arc of Ascension, Edda 10: Turquoise-eyed Orisa, the Guardian

Efi couldn’t help but be excited as she arrived at the Numbani branch office of the Ziegler Institute. She’d stopped in for a regular checkup now and then, but they’d mentioned something special today - a _teleporter_ to send her over to the main clinic! She’d read the theory, but she’d never seen a working example outside of the small point to point demonstrator at the Science  & Innovation museum.

Orisa followed her off the bus, carefully making her way down the steps to the street to make sure she didn’t damage the bus or the curb again. “You usually do not seem so happy to be going to the doctor,” she observed with amusement. “Didn’t you try to hide from the dentist?”

“That was different,” Efi assured her. “Besides, Doctor Ziegler is really nice! And I will get to see some of my friends from the workshop!”

“Miss Tracer and Miss Danielle seemed very nice from your stories,” Orisa agreed. “I am looking forward to meeting them.”

Efi grinned as she hit the activator to open the wider sliding door. “I’m glad you get to come with me, this time! Oasis was so pretty - I think you’ll love the bazaar!”

“I’m sure I will!” 

An aide met them in the lobby, showing them to the basement where the teleporter had been set up, the portal casting the entire room in blue radiance. 

Orisa took a few steps towards the gateway, examining it before she turned her head to look over at Efi, her eyes set in an expression of polite concern. “Should I go first?”

“I don’t think it matters,” Efi decided. “It’s proven technology - they said this station’s been in use for several weeks.”

“Well, that is good,” Orisa decided, “but I’d still like to go first.”

Efi reached up to pat her creation’s hand, appreciating her protective instincts. “OK - you first, and I’ll be next.”

The portal flared as Orisa disappeared though it, and after the aide signaled it was clear for her to go through, Efi stepped through, feeling a bit like she’d just jumped out of a tree or gone down a steep slide for a moment before she was stepping onto a different room, the wide windows showing Oasis’ skyline gleaming in the afternoon sun. 

Danielle was there, dressed in a white blouse and dark slacks, while Lena was wearing running leggings and a t-shirt beneath her accelerator as she shook Orisa’s hand with a delighted smile.

“Efi’s told us a lot about you,” Lena said happily. “It’s nice to finally meet you in person!”

“I’m glad to meet you as well,” Orisa replied with delight. “I am looking forward to seeing the city while Efi is here!”

Danielle nodded, but her expression seemed a bit more reserved. “We will have a few things to discuss with you first, Efi, but afterwards we would be happy to show both of you whatever you would like.”

“Oh,” Efi said as they left the room. “Is everything all right?”

“It will be,” Doctor Ziegler said as she met them in the corridor, “but we have a few things to discuss about the results from your therapy.”

Efi smiled at the doctor as they followed her into another part of the hospital. “I feel wonderful, doctor, and my vision - it’s been incredible! I feel like I can see so much more detail than I did before!”

“That’s delightful to hear,” the doctor said with a kind smile, then opened a door marked _Consultation Room_. “If you would.” She turned to Orisa, looking up into her eyes. “Orisa, do you mind waiting here? We need to go over some of Efi’s protected information. Danielle and Lena are cleared for this, since they were assisting with her initial recovery, but…”

“I don’t mind,” Efi assured the doctor. “I told her about everything from my first visit.”

“I understand that,” Doctor Ziegler said firmly, “but legally…”

Orisa solved the problem by taking a few steps back, and settling down onto her forelegs. “I can wait here. I wouldn’t want to get anyone in trouble.” She leaned forward, her voice dropping to a stage whisper as she put her hand over her vocoder. “Besides,” she said with a wink for her friend and creator, “you can always tell me later over ice cream.”

Efi giggled and nodded, giving Orisa a quick hug while she was closer to the ground. “Well, in that case, okay!”

Once they went inside the consultation room, the doctor sat down in a chair at the head of the table, with Lena to her right, while Danielle took a seat on the other side and gestured for Efi to sit next to her.

There was a moment of silence broken only by Danielle tapping her fingers against the tabletop, and then Doctor Ziegler opened her padd and placed it on the table so Efi could see the screen. 

“First - the good news. Your therapy has been completely successful, and the follow up tests over time have continued to show excellent progress as your body has adapted to your new eyes and the modifications to your genetic structure. In fact, you are likely to notice even greater near-range visual acuity as you grow older and the improved cornea and lens grow with you through puberty.”

Efi didn’t understand most of the medical terminology, but the notes on the padd for expected ranges vs. her actual numbers were easy enough to figure out. Still… 

“When my dad tells my mom there is good news first, it usually means bad news second.”

Lena failed to stifle her giggle at that, and Doctor Ziegler gave her a weak smile. “I suppose ‘bad’ depends on how you choose to view what I am going to tell you next. It is about the _other_ therapy that was performed while you were here.”

“Other therapy?” Efi frowned at the doctor. “The only treatments I remember were for my eyes.”

“Most of the other treatments were performed while you slept,” Danielle explained. “Both here, at the hospital, and while you attended the workshop.”

“I thought I was just having strange dreams,” Efi said quietly, after a moment's pause. “Does that mean... they _weren’t_ dreams?” 

“Some of them likely were,” Doctor Ziegler said as she opened a new file on the padd. “Some, perhaps, were a reaction by your mind to some of the changes you were going through.”

Efi read through the file as carefully as she could. Most of it was medical and biological terminology she didn’t really have the background to interpret, but one section…

_Aha! Nervous system bridging. Feedback induction, heightened conductivity - yes!_ But she still had far too many questions.

“I don’t understand,” she said as she put the padd back down. “What is all of this? Why was it... why did you do this to _me?_ ”

“One of my colleagues,” the doctor began slowly, “developed a series of enhancements to improve... well. She would call it ‘the human condition.’ Reflexes, sensory input, many other things. A way to make people... to make _us_... something more.” She paused for a moment and looked down at the padd, then looked up to meet her eyes again. “Several of us were given these treatments... not always by choice.”

“Tell her the truth,” Danielle said firmly. “Tell her the _complete_ truth.”

The doctor grimaced, but nodded. “The woman who developed these treatments is my wife, Dr. Moira O’Deorain. Lena, Danielle, and I were some of her first... subjects. After we were Changed, she began to look for others who she felt would be," she gestured with her hands, picking a word, "...worthy, I suppose one might say.” 

Lena cleared her throat. “I knew about your work creatin’ Orisa, Efi. Winst…” She stopped herself, then seemed to shake herself slightly. “A friend of mine was followin' your work ever since you won the Adawe grant. When mum asked for suggestions of people who could help change the world... well. I thought of you.”

“I... guess that is a compliment,” Efi said uncertainly, “but I still don’t…” She looked down at the padd again, then over to Danielle. “Please, what is going on?”

“Your eyes were fine,” Danielle said bluntly. “Or at least had no more of a chance to develop a problem than an average person with a relative who had suffered retinitis pigmentosa. Your test was altered to make sure your parents would agree to treating you. To make sure you could be brought here.”

“Brought here,” Efi said slowly, “and... changed.”

Danielle nodded, her face impassive, while Lena seemed conflicted, and Doctor Ziegler uncomfortable, even faintly ashamed.

“No one else,” Efi said as she looked at Danielle, “had an advocate, did they.”

“No,” Danielle shook her head. “They did not.” 

“Lena has always been there, but... not quite in that role. In the future," the doctor said thoughtfully, “perhaps it is something we should consider.”

“Can you tell me what this…” Efi gestured to the padd, “will do to me?”

“Actually,” Lena said, “that depends on you, luv.” 

Efi sat back, waiting for them to explain. 

“We,” the doctor explained as she gestured to the others in the room, “received all of our... upgrades... at once. For several reasons, yours were designed to develop slowly, as you aged. Naturally. Much of it was tied to the same hormonal changes that your body will go through during puberty. But if, once we are done explaining everything, you want to us to prevent them from taking place…” The doctor sighed. “It would be very difficult, but there _may_ be a way to stop them. Your eyes would remain the same, but the rest… you should be in good health, likely for the rest of your life, but nothing more.”

Efi sat there, processing that, carefully looking at the doctor’s conflicted expression.

“You don’t seem like you want to try to stop them," she finally said.

The doctor’s eyes flashed as she straightened up. “These changes were not designed to be _rolled back_ like some sort of software update! We have been attempting to model the effects of reversal, but have no way to absolutely predict the success - or the consequences.” Her eyes flicked to Danielle, who Efi noticed had crossed her arms over her chest.

“I _respect_ that you should have a choice in this. It is your body, Efi, and your future. You _should have_ been consulted beforehand, and you were not, and that sort of... process... will not happen again. That it did is why I am willing to do this at all. But as far as I'm concerned, everything we did - _everything_ we did - was tremendously beneficial, and by asking you if you want it undone, we may as well be asking you if you want to grow up deaf and blind!"

Efi shuddered at that image. “I think I understand.” She looked over to Lena. "Would you... undo it?"

Lena shook her head immediately. "Oh gods, no. Never. Not for anything in the world. Not even for..." She seemed to think twice about something and chose to stop herself with another little toss of her head. "Not for hardly anything."

“If I let the changes happen,” Efi asked after she’d considered both of those answers, “will they hurt?”

“No,” Doctor Ziegler said. “Or at least, no more than the regular aches and pains that often come with growth spurts and development.”

“Mine did,” Lena admitted. “At lot. But like she said - ours were all at once, and as adults. I was able to sleep through some of it, but... some of them hurt.”

“I see.” Efi looked over to Danielle. “Are the... upgrades... why you are blue?”

“No,” Danielle answered her with a little shake of her head. “That was…” She trailed off, then looked down at her hands. “No,” she repeated, to herself. “The _complete_ truth.” She looked at Efi again, and her golden eyes had a new intensity to them. “I was abducted, several years ago. Changed in different ways, all against my will. My body. My mind. My... sense of self. One of those changes altered my heart, and my skin. _That_ is why I am blue.”

“Oh.” Efi reached out to take the end of her ponytail. “What about your hair?” 

“I had my hair colour changed,” Danielle admitted. “I decided I liked it better this way.”

Efi nodded. That made sense, she supposed. “What happened to you... is that why you decided to be my advocate?” 

“You deserve the chance to be a child,” Danielle said firmly. “To grow up. To have a good life, no matter what you decide today.”

She looked around the room again. “Why did you tell me to bring Orisa today, if you were going to tell me all of this?”

Danielle looked down at the table. “Because if you asked to leave, we wanted to make sure that someone you could trust would take you home.”

“You wanted me to be safe,” Efi murmured as she looked down at the padd, then back to Danielle and Lena. “You’ve _both_ been trying to keep me safe.”

“ _Yes_ ,” Danielle said, something fierce in her voice, and Lena nodded, reaching across the table to take her wife’s hand and hold it tight, and she did not miss the way that the blue woman smiled.

_Just like... yes! I was right!_

“You don’t have to decide anything today,” Doctor Ziegler said gently. “You can go to the bazaar, visit the library, or even go home this very moment, if you like.”

Efi opened her rose-gold eyes, and shook her head. “No, that’s... thank you, Doctor. I think I’ve already made up my mind - but I do have a question.” 

Lena blinked, surprise written all over her face. “Really?”

“Really,” Efi confirmed with a nod. “Can you let Orisa in? Please? I would like her to…” For the first time since this started, she grinned. “Actually, I want to show _you_ something.”

The three adults exchanged glances of clear surprise as Lena stood, nodding before she teleported to the door. "'Course, luv."

As Lena asked Orisa to come in, Efi looked up at Danielle, reached over, and took the blue woman’s hand. "Would I lose _this?_ " 

Danielle gasped, and Efi could _feel_ her surprise as it broke through her concern. "You... you already can...?"

Before she could answer, Orisa tromped as delicately as she could through the door, angling her torso to make sure she would fit through. "Thank you for bringing me inside, but it _is_ a little small. I will have to be very careful."

Efi hopped out of her chair. “I understand! Here - may I have your hand?”

“Of course.” Orisa extended her arm, and Efi smiled as she found the lip of the insulative plastic she’d applied the day before, then carefully stripped it away. 

“Perfect - stay right there!”

Efi took Danielle's hand and placed it in Orisa's, and the omnic almost jumped with surprise as her optics turned from yellow to a brilliant turquoise blue. "...it is not just Efi!" she said, happily. "It is also you?"

“Wot?!” Lena’s jaw dropped. “ _Seriously?!_ Efi!" She laughed, thinking, _Ahead of us the whole time, weren't you?_ "Brilliant!”

"It is also me." Danielle almost seemed to melt as she and Orisa held hands, her expression one of delight as she looked at the omnic in an entirely different way. "You are _beautiful_."

Efi looked back to Dr. Ziegler, her expression suddenly quite serious. "If we stopped, I would lose this?" 

The doctor’s eyes were wide with shock, her expression one of disbelief until she shook her head and collected herself, carefully, and considered the options.

Danielle glanced over sharply as she let go of Orisa’s hand. "The _truth_."

"I never considered anything else," Angela frowned, bit her lower lip, a little, and turned back towards Efi. "Yes," she said, quietly. "You would. Completely."

Efi nodded. She had expected that answer, but she had needed to hear it out loud. "Then - no! Do not stop it!” She looked over and put a hand on Orisa’s hip, relaxing as she felt her friend’s solid strength and warmth running through her. 

“Can you help me make Orisa's version _better?_ ” she asked in a sudden rush of breathless inspiration. “I was working off reverse-engineered tests on myself, so I’m certain there are ways it could be optimized! Does that report on your padd show the optimal levels for conduction and reception? I wanted to be able to share this but it will be so much easier if I know how the system works!"

Angela all but collapsed, radiant with relief. "Oh, I was worried, I was so afraid you would be afraid, that you'd make a _terrible_..." She flew over, but stopped herself before she picked up Efi and hugged her. " _May_ I hug you?" she asked.

" _Can_ you help me improve it? _Will_ you?" Efi asked, her expression becoming stern again.

"I would very much think so," the doctor said, beaming. "And I will absolutely do my best."

Efi smiled back to her with delight as she opened her arms. "Then... yes!"

\-----

Orisa slept.

Orisa slept, and Orisa dreamed.

Dreaming wasn't entirely unknown amongst omnics. The engineers called it an outcome effect of offline optimisation, retroactively applied to downtime, and not actual dreams, and insisted that was somehow different, but the Shambali asked precisely what that difference was supposed to be, and the engineers did not have entirely convincing answers. And with someone like Orisa - even before Efi's latest round of updates - the insistence became even more tenuous.

But now, after three days in Oasis, and three days of Efi's latest work, Orisa, sleeping, next to Efi, next, also, to Danielle, who sat, quietly, and still, next to her, keeping guard over them both, she dreamt more, and in ways she had not dreamt in the past.

She'd often dreamt of protecting Efi. And of protecting Numbani, her home. And of protecting the people of Numbani. And she'd never really dreamt of anyone protecting _her_.

But now, this night... she did. And that was new.

She awoke as quietly as she could, and turned to look at Danielle, who looked up from her novel and smiled. "Are you well, Orisa? Do you need..."

"Thank you," Orisa said softly, her turquoise eyes bright.

"For what?" the assassin asked, equally softly.

"For protecting her. For protecting... _us_."

The woman still known as Widowmaker, the woman who still knew, in her heart, that she was, first amongst all things, an assassin, and knew still, that she loved the kill, and knew still, most of all, that she had been created to bring only death, felt her breath catch in her lungs, and felt her eyes grow wet, and a single, silent, huffed laugh escaped her throat.

Orisa's hand was under Efi's, and Danielle did not wish to break that, so she touched the large omnic's shoulder, like she'd seen Efi do, and felt the connection even there. "Thank you both," she whispered, "...for giving me a purpose other than... the one for which I was made."

"I think you did that yourself," Orisa said, still as quiet as she could possibly be. "But I am happy to have been one you have chosen to protect."

"May I... may I... lean against you?" Danielle asked, trying to blink her golden eyes clear of tears, and only partially succeeding.

"Of course!" Orisa said, happily. "I will remain firmly in rest position while I am asleep, so do not worry about any instability. Would you like a pillow? I cannot get one, but will not move, so if you..."

"I... I have one. And, and, yes. If you do not mind."

"It would be my pleasure, Miss Guillard."

Danielle Guillard put her novel aside, and tilted back her chair, turning it, putting her pillow on Orisa's back, and rested her head on it, one hand on Orisa's back, and let herself sleep. And for the very first time, she dreamt, not of kills, but of ballet...

...and of ponies.

**Author's Note:**

> This is the ninth instalment of _Of Gods and Monsters: The Arc of Ascension_. To follow this story, [subscribe to the series via this link](https://archiveofourown.org/series/972024), rather than to the individual works.


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